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Tuesday, 2 November 2010

Adarsh Scam MoD to probe when Army lost ownership
Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, November 1 An ongoing
in-house probe by the Defence Ministry into the allegations levelled against
the Mumbai-based Adarsh Housing Society, will establish "when the possession
of land and its ownership actually changed hands". According to sources, the
change happened between 1996 and 2003. The Indian Army is set to launch a
Court of Inquiry (CoI) to look into ownership of land and the circumstances
under which the Army relinquished it in favour of a private society. The CoI
is slated to go through the list of society members and establish any "signs
of conflict of interest" of the officers who are beneficiaries and their
role in transferring the land. The scope of the CoI will be limited as the
Army can taken action only against its serving officers and a limited action
against those who retired recently. The Ministry was studying all aspects
of land ownership, alongwith the "security threat" posed by the 31-storey
high building located smack on the coast in Colaba, South Mumbai. Sources
said some facts relating to the ownership were yet to emerge and even
suspected that files may have been tampered with, to hide the truth. It
clearly indicates a "criminal conspiracy between some officials and the
private promoters of the society". It could tantamount to "breach of
privilege of Parliament", as a question relating to the land transfer was
raised in 2003 in the House, said sources . It was between 1996 and 2003
that the land ownership changed hands and files pertaining to this period
were being studied. The logic is if the land did not belong to the Defence
Ministry then why would a private society "oblige" so many Army and Navy
officials besides functionaries of the Defence Estates Department, a
civilian agency under the Ministry? Some 35 of the 103 flats are in
possession of the officials from the Services the functionaries of the
Estates Department. Notably, the Deve Gowda-IK Gujral United Front
government was in power between 1996 and 1998. Mulayam Singh was the Defence
Minister for a considerable period. Between 1998 and 2004, the BJP-led NDA
was in power. George Fernandes and Jaswant Singh handled the Defence
portfolio then. Sources said reservation of the plot was modified from
Transit Camp and a Parade Ground' to 'Residential Zone'. Why did the Army
agree to it and who was responsible for it? In 1996, the DG Infantry had
inaugurated an eco-park at the same spot and the military engineering
services had also built a wall around the plot now valued at more than Rs
500 crore in the open market. After the probe, a decision is expected to
hand over the investigations to a civilian agency like the CBI.http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101102/main4.htm
Kargil war widows feel let down
Kusum Arora Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 1 The ongoing
controversy over the allotment of flats in Mumbai's Adarsh Cooperative
Housing Society has left Kargil war widows across the country shocked, who
have termed it as a "disgusting"' and "shameful" incident. While many
Kargil war widows expressed ignorance of any such flats meant for them in
the society, others lambasted Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan for
claiming privileges in the name of Kargil martyrs. They have demanded a
thorough probe into this incident. Manjeet Kaur, widow of Kargil martyr
Subedar Nirmal Singh from 8 Sikh Regiment, said: "Post-Kargil war, some
politicians had mentioned about flats for widows in Mumbai. But that was 11
years ago and after that nobody contacted us. It is only through the media
that we got to know about the flats. While they were already occupied by
politicians and senior Army officers, we were kept in the dark." Manjeet
Kaur, along with two sons, lives in Chinna Bet village in Gurdaspur.
Surinder Kaur, widow of Naib Subedar Ravail Singh from Jammu, said: "It is
disgusting that while we are managing our livelihood with many hardships,
politicians are enjoying over our rights. We were never aware of any such
flats in the society in Mumbai. It seems that politicians and Army officers
are hand in glove with each other," she added. Dr NK Kalia, father of the
first Kargil martyr, Capt Saurabh Kalia of 4 JAT, termed the Indian
political system as "hopeless". "It is always a lone battle for the families
of the martyrs later. Who cares about war widows and their families? But it
is shocking that why the Army authorities did not inform the Kargil war
widows about flats all these years", he maintained. Lt Col JS Rathore from
8 Sikh Regiment, who had sustained injuries during the war and whose name
has been mentioned in dispatches for his bravery, also condemned the scam.
He said: "Our regiment lost one officer, four junior commissioned officers
and 34 personnel below officer rank (PBOR) to the war. We know how much it
hurts to see a soldier die and his widow making a living later."http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101102/nation.htm#2
Adarsh housing scam fuels internal strife in Congress Deshmukh accuses
Chavan of asking society to change bylaws
New Delhi, November 1 Starting a blame game, Union Minister Vilasrao
Deshmukh today said it was Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan (Revenue
Minister at that time) who had asked the controversial housing society
involved in a scam in Mumbai to change bylaws to include civilians in it.
Denying any role in the scam, Deshmukh, who signed the "letter of intent and
not the final order" as the Chief Minister, ruled out resignation from the
Union Government. "The application, which was made earlier, was made to
construct houses for servicemen. That was the main proposal, but ultimately
what happened in between is that they changed the bylaws. The society was
asked to change the bylaws by the then Revenue Minister, Ashok Chavan. That
is on record. He called a meeting and called members of the society and
asked them to change the bylaws and 40 per cent of civilians should be
allowed to be members of the society. There it created a lot of problems,"
Deshmukh said. Asked about the fact that it was under his chief
ministership that the final permissions were given and whether he accepted
responsibility for the same, he said "No, I don't deny that, but the problem
is what I signed was the letter of intent and not the final order. Secondly,
the prerogative of clearing everything is with the Revenue Department.
Whatever the recommendations made by the Revenue Department, in good faith I
have signed the file." This was a general practice, he said. Asked whether
he would resign as Chavan has offered to step down, the Union Minister shot
back, "For what? There is no need for that." Meanwhile, Congress President
Sonia Gandhi earlier today held consultations with senior party leaders in
New Delhi on the fate of Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan over the
scam. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Defence Minister AK Antony and
senior party leader Ahmed Patel met Gandhi and are understood to have
discussed the matter. - Agencies Promoters to move HC Mumbai: Promoters of
the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society have decided to file an appeal in the
Bombay High Court against the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport
(BEST) and the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA)
for their decision to disconnect electricity supply to the society and
revoke occupation certificates issued to its members. Maharashtra Chief
Minister Ashok Chavan had earlier directed the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional
Development Authority to revoke the occupation certificates (OC) issued to
the members of the controversial housing society. BEST, which supplies
water and electricity to the building, has issued a notice to the society
asking members to produce occupation certificates or else the electricity
supply would be disconnected.http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101102/nation.htm#3
Tribunal denies bail to Lt Gen in ration scam Army told to complete court
martial in 2 months
Vijay Mohan Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 1 The Armed Forces
Tribunal today declined to grant bail to Lt Gen SK Sahni, former Director
General (Supplies and Transport), who is being tried by a General Court
Martial for alleged professional impropriety. Observing that the charges
against Gen Sahni was serious, the Tribunal Bench comprising Justice
Ghanshyam Prashad and Lt Gen HS Panag said the bail could not be granted at
this stage as deposition of prosecution witnesses was still in progress.
The Tribunal, however, directed the Army to complete the court martial
within two months. Sahni, the first officer of the rank of Lieutenant
General to face court martial proceedings for alleged professional
impropriety, has been under arrest since July 31 when his trial commenced at
Jalandhar. He is facing eight charges under Sections 52 and 63 of the Army
Act for intent to defraud and acts prejudicial to military discipline in the
procurement of dry rations for troops. Claiming that charges against him
were time-barred and there was no evidence against him on record, he had
sought bail to avail medical treatment and also to take care of his aged
mother. Apart from seeking bail, General Sahni has also challenged his
trial. The matter is scheduled to come for for hearing on December 15.
Pension anomalies of Majors removed In a relief to over 100 officers to the
ranks of Major and equivalent, Tribunal Bench comprising Justice NP Gupta
and Lt Gen NS Brar today allowed their writ petition seeking removal of
anomalies in pension that would now entitle them to higher pension.
Consequently, the Majors, who had retired prior to 2006 and were getting
pension lower than even junior commissioned officers, would now get an
additional basic pension of about Rs 5,000 per month besides consequential
benefits. After the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission, the pension
of Majors was fixed at Rs 14,100 per month. This even less than JCOs four
ranks below their grade who were getting a pension of Rs 16,145. The anomaly
in pension fixation arose because the minimum of the entire Payband-3 (Rs
15,600-39,100) was taken into account instead of considering the minimum of
the grade applicable to the Majors (Rs 23,810). The petitioners had
contended that the existing basic pay inclusive of grade pay and military
service pay works out to be Rs 36,410. Hence their pension at the stipulated
50 per cent of basic works out to be Rs 18,205 per month, to which they were
entitled. The pension of Lieutenant Colonel is fixed at Rs 25,700 where as
that of Majors who retired before 2006 is Rs 14,100, creating a huge
difference of Rs 11,600, the petitioners claimed. Prior to the Sixth Pay
Commission, the difference was just Rs 950.http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101102/nation.htm#4
"Adarsh" loot How VVIPs elbowed out Kargil heroes, widows
Adarsh Housing Society was supposed to build a six-storey structure in the
Colaba area of Mumbai to accommodate and reward the heroes and widows of the
Kargil operations. However, these actual beneficiaries were slowly reduced
to the status of bit players in a grand land scam. The modest building
became a 31-storey tower where the who's who of politics, defence and
bureaucracy grabbed flats at throwaway prices. Not only the politicians, but
also their relatives and minions made full use of this windfall. And yet,
Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan now has the cheek to say that his
mother-in-law who got a flat in the tower was not family but only a "distant
relative". With their perfidy having come to light, they are scampering to
return the flats as if that washes the stains of the loot from their hands.
They have committed a crime against the nation and also against those who
laid down their lives for the protection of the motherland. Since many
VVIPs, including two former army chiefs and a former Navy chief, were
involved, rules were bent to suit their needs with impunity. There were
irregularities galore. For instance, the building did not even have Coastal
Regulation Zone clearance. Now that the top people have been caught with
their fingers in the till, there is a hollow-sounding show of innocence that
they did not know that the flats were meant for people connected with the
Kargil operations. Taking back the flats or even imposing a fine will be no
more than a gentle rap on the knuckles. The guilty need to be punished in an
exemplary way. A great blame game is on. As a result, the names of many
other leaders who benefited are coming to light. In a way, that is good
because the dirty trail can be traced to the end. But at the same time,
there is a very real danger that they may put all their resources together
to airbrush the scam. All eyes are now on Sonia Gandhi. One hopes that she
will side with the truth and not those who fatten themselves on the strength
of their real or projected proximity to 10 Janpath.http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101102/edit.htm#1
US-Pak troubled alliance Implications for NATO's Afghan drive
by Anita Inder Singh Pakistan is a frontline state against global
terrorism. That is why the US will give it $2 billion in military aid. To
that extent Washington believes that Islamabad is 'with us'. But the aid
will be given with the caveat that it should be used to fight extremists,
not India. That seems to be a tall order, given the fact that Washington
knows that most military aid has been handy to Pakistan's Army against
India. The problem is that its military dependence on Pakistan against
extremists leads it to take the chance that can put pressure on Islamabad to
do more against the Afghan Taliban on its turf. At the same time, the US
does wonder whether Pakistan is really "with us". Or is it "against us"?
Questions about Pakistan's ambivalent attitude to extremists will persist,
although it has reopened the main supply route - the Torkham gate - through
which 80 per cent of supplies are transported to NATO in Afghanistan. Its
relationship with the US is also likely to remain prickly. Since September
30, when two Pakistani soldiers were killed in NATO air strikes, public
anger at the West has been strong in Pakistan. Islamabad retaliated by
closing the Torkham border crossing to Afghanistan, while Pakistani
militants torched more than 100 NATO convoys in retaliation for NATO attacks
on extremist strongholds in northwestern Pakistan. The diplomatic and
military headaches these events created will continue to have implications
for America's military dependence on Pakistan, and for NATO's troubled
Afghan campaign. NATO claimed that its operations were unaffected, but
Pakistan's shutting of the Torkham turned the screw on the alliance. Another
Pakistani border - crossing - Chaman in the south-western province of
Balochistan - remained open, but NATO tankers came under Taliban fire there
as well. NATO will continue to explore alternative routes through Uzbekistan
and Tajikistan into northern Afghanistan. Sadly, Pakistani goodwill towards
the US, in evidence as Washington recently provided $362 million in flood
relief and sent helicopters and crews to rescue flood victims, seems to have
dissipated. Pakistani anti-Americanism - never absent - has increased since
the US started launching drone attacks on extremist strongholds in
north-western Pakistan two years ago. Those attacks are made with the
consent of Islamabad . But Pakistani officials seem to do little to explain
that to the public who are furious at America's violation of their country's
sovereignty, while the military resents NATO cross-border attacks which have
resulted in the deaths of several Taliban militants. For those NATO raids
imply that Western troops could cross the Durand Line into Pakistan every
day if they deemed that necessary. Assaults on NATO trucks have often been
revenge for American drone strikes on Taliban bases in northern Waziristan,
and the Pakistani Taliban has admitted responsibility for the attacks on
NATO convoys and vowed to carry out more. The important questions are
whether the Pakistani military intelligence (ISI) is behind the attacks on
NATO tankers (some Americans believe they are) and whether the Pakistani
military is able or ready to protect the supply routes across the Durand
Line. For now, both Pakistan and the US have drawn back from the brink. The
US has apologised for the deaths of the Pakistani soldiers. And Pakistan,
close to economic collapse, can hardly afford to lose the $2 billion
largesse it gets from the US annually in return for the logistical support
it gives NATO in Afghanistan. So, President Zardari's unpopular government,
trying to make the reopening of the Torkham palatable to their compatriots
by giving them the impression that Islamabad has the upper hand, has told
them that American apologies reflect a diplomatic victory for Pakistan.
Washington may remain dissatisfied. Pakistan's military has yet to agree to
America's demand to quash the Afghan Taliban, whose activists enjoy safe
havens on Pakistani turf. Even before the unprecedented summer floods
triggered economic and humanitarian crisis and exposed the incompetence of
the Zardari administration and its lack of popular support, the army had
repeatedly rebuffed American demands to crack down on the Afghan Taliban.
With the army now giving priority to flood relief work, the humanitarian
exigency has raised awkward questions - not for the first time - about
Pakistan's reliability and uses as an ally against extremists. After all,
Pakistan's interest in having a say in any reconciliation talks on
Afghanistan and in its future political arrangements is at odds with its
apparent inability either to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table, to
stamp them out, or to protect NATO convoys from being attacked by Pakistani
extremists. Meanwhile, there is the danger that the Afghan war could spill
over into Pakistan, escalating the theatre of conflict. None of these
problems is likely to be sorted out before US troops start a planned
withdrawal in July 2011 and, in Washington, President Osama is drawing flak
for announcing a troop surge as well as a pullout date. Withdrawal dates by
great powers have always been construed by political parties as an
announcement of the intention to retreat. Indeed, in India, the British
statement of February 20, 1947, - that the Raj would be wound up by June
1948 - immediately comes to mind. It inspired the Muslim League to instigate
communal carnage in Punjab, to force the British into partitioning the Raj
before they left India. Confronted with an administrative breakdown beyond
their control, they brought forward the departure date to August 15, 1947,
so that they could divide and quit with the least possible damage to
themselves. Pakistan's military and the Taliban have both interpreted
Obama's withdrawal date of June 2011 to mean that the West is defeatist, and
that all they have to do is to wait until American troops retreat from
Afghanistan, leaving them with a clear playing field. That is why, back in
Washington, some American analysts think that Obama wants to be seen as
trying to win in Afghanistan, but is actually preparing the ground for
failure. The nagging question: Is Pakistan "with us or against us"?
Regardless of the answer, what the recent row between Pakistan and the US -
as well as the announcement of more military aid - boils down to is that
Washington DC and its European allies still lack a strategy which would
enable their troops to beat an honourable retreat from Afghanistan - let
alone to win there. Is it time for the US to review its dependence on
Pakistan instead of showering it with more weapons?http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20101102/edit.htm#4
Adarsh Society a security risk, said Army and Navy recently
Nitin Gokhale, Updated: November 01, 2010 20:08 IST Ads by Google Luxury
Home Doors Windows - European Quality. Made for India. India's #1 Window &
Door Company www.Fenesta.com PLAYClick to Expand & Play Mumbai: Even as
several Army officers lined up for flats in Mumbai's controversial Adarsh
Society, the Army and the Navy wrote to the government barely three months
ago, stating that the high-rise building in Mumbai's prized Colaba was a
security risk. The 31-storey building seems poised to expose a careful
conspiracy between Army officers, bureaucrats and politicians to help
themselves to flats that were meant to largely be reserved for war widows
and veterans. Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan is waiting to hear
whether his resignation will be accepted. He acknowledged last week that his
relatives were allotted flats in the building, but have since returned them.
The building - originally meant to be less than 10 storeys high - expanded,
allegedly without environmental clearances, to overlook important Army and
Naval installations around it. So in August, the Southern Army Command in
Pune and the Western naval Command in Mumbai wrote to the government warning
of a security risk. The Navy said that it had asked office-bearers of the
Adarsh Society to share details of the different people who were allotted
flats, so that their backgrounds could be checked. The society allegedly
refused.
In separate letters, the Army and the Navy asked the centre to take over the
building. They said Adarsh Society gave flat-owners vantage views of supply
depots, a Naval fuel dump and an Army engineering workshop. The Army and
Navy told the Ministry of Defence, that a civilian society cannot overlook
defence installations.http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/adarsh-society-a-security-risk-said-army-a
nd-navy-recently-63871
Adarsh scam: Was this General the mastermind?
Prachi Jawadekar Wagh, Updated: November 01, 2010 22:02 IST Ads by Google
Luxury Home Doors Windows - European Quality. Made for India. India's #1
Window & Door Company www.Fenesta.com PLAYClick to Expand & Play Mumbai:
How senior Army officers pulled rank to first sanction and then corner flats
in Adarsh Society is being studied carefully by the Army now. The core of
the controversy is that the building, meant for war widows and veterans, has
been divided up between politicians, bureaucrats and army officers at
massively discounted prices. Sources say that it's clear that the pivotal
force of the scam was TK Kaul, who retired as Major General in 2006 and owns
a flat in the 31-storey building in Mumbai's Colaba area. Adarsh Society
towers over several key defence installations in the area - hence, it could
not have been developed without sanction from top officers. Kaul, who runs
a security company in Mumbai now, seems to have gone underground. But in
2000, when the proposal for Adarsh Society was floated, Kaul was the
Sub-Area Commander at Colaba. * Share this on Rediff.com Rediff.com
* NDTVTwitter * NDTVNDTV Social * Share with MessengerLive Messenger
* NDTVGmail Buzz * NDTVPrint In 2001, he attended a course for
Brigadiers at the National Defence College - standard procedure meant he
should have then gone on to command a division after such a course.
Instead, in 2002, he was brought back as Army Commander to Mumbai,
presumably so that he could push through Army clearances for Adarsh Society.
In return for enabling the project, sources say, he was given plum postings
in Mumbai. In addition to the flat that he owns, Kaul has power of attorney
for two others. On record, so far, 62 of the 104 flats were allotted to
retired and serving Army officers. Among them, four successive commanders
of the Pune-Based Southern Army Command who have all been allotted Adarsh
Society flats. The post they held meant that they were the final authority
for all clearances given by the army to Adarsh Society. NDTV has now learnt
that in August this year, the Army and the Navy wrote separately to the
Central government complaining that Adarsh Society was a security risk - as
a high-rise, it offered civilians a vantage view of critical navy and Army
installations.http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/adarsh-scam-was-this-general-the-mastermin
d-63677
Adarsh scam: MOD, army to nail 'corrupt' officers
November 02, 2010 01:48 IST Tags: Adarsh Housing Society, K Antony, Army
Chiefs Generals Deepak Kapoor, Navy, Military Engineering Service Share this
Ask Users Write a Comment Stung by the Adarsh Housing Society scam, the
army is all set to order a court of inquiry into it while the defence
ministry plans to slap show cause notices against serving officers. Click!
Serving officers from the army and defence estates, who had "defacto
possession" of the 6,490-sqmt plot close to military installations, will
have to "answer how and when they alienated the land" to the Adarsh Housing
Society, defence ministry sources said in New Delhi [ Images ] on Monday.
With the its preliminary probe, ordered by Defence Minister A K Antony last
week, pointing "prima facie" towards a "criminal conspiracy" and "collusion"
by some of its officers in the scam, the ministry is considering taking
action against them before the beginning of the winter session of Parliament
from November nine. From its side, the army is proceeding to institute a
court of inquiry into the affair to track and record the role played by its
officers, both serving and retired, in letting the Adarsh society to build
the 31-storey apartment block in 2003 overlooking sensitive defence
infrastructure. The army had been using the land for its training purposes
since the early 1940s. In 1996, it had opened an ecological park on the land
and the Military Engineering Service had build a boundary wall around it.
The army troops in Mumbai [ Images ] were holding their training sessions on
the land till 1999, according to the army's report submitted to the defence
ministry. The Adarsh Society issue resurfaced recently after Western Naval
Commander Vice Admiral Sanjeev Bhasin wrote to the defence ministry seeking
action against the building promoters for disregarding security concerns.
Among those allotted flats in the 100-feet building are former Army Chiefs
Generals Deepak Kapoor and N C Vij, retired Navy Chief Admiral Madhavendra
Singh, former Union Minister Suresh Prabhu and kin of Maharashtra [ Images ]
Chief Minister Ashok Chavan [ Images ]. Of the 104 apartments in the
buildings, about 40 have been allotted to serving personnel from the army,
navy and the defence estates, which is the custodian of all defence land in
the country. Some of these officers were reportedly in the chain of command
that apparently overlooked the land being alienated from the army's
possession and Adarsh Society constructing the building there, an issue that
is being "closely" looked into by the defence ministry probe. Antony had
sought reports on the Adarsh Society from the army, navy and the defence
estates when he had ordered the probe. While the army and defence estates
reports have been submitted to him, the navy was yet to give its comments.
"The navy report will be submitted soon. We are awaiting the their comments
so that we can take a final call on the action to be taken," sources said.http://news.rediff.com/report/2010/nov/02/adarsh-scam-mod-army-to-nail-corru
pt-officers.htm
After Adarsh, another plot brews
Josy Joseph, TNN, Nov 2, 2010, 01.43am IST NEW DELHI: The circle of
corruption in India's defence establishment appears to be growing. Even as
the Adarsh Housing Society scandal brings shame to top netas and babus,
generals and admirals, another controversy is brewing over the handling of
prime defence real estate in Pune, which could blow up into a full-fledged
scandal. The Army southern command's general officer commanding-in-chief,
Lt Gen Pradeep Khanna, has written a strong letter to Army chief Gen V K
Singh protesting against the ``impropriety'' and ``mala fide intention''
behind the sudden replacement of the CEO of Pune Cantonment -- one of the
richest in the country -- by an officer of dodgy integrity. Documents seen
by TOI tell a story of strong-arm tactics being employed against Rachel
Koshy, the outgoing CEO, by the director general of defence estates (DGDE)
Pal Saran Singh in abruptly cutting short Koshy's tenure after six months
and bringing B A Dhayalan, a man who is facing a ``string of vigilance
cases'', in her place. The Pune Cantonment CEO is the seniormost officer
directly dealing with its real estate. Lt Gen Khanna has pointed out in his
letter that Dhayalan was trapped in a sting operation by a well-known TV
channel when he was defence estate officer (DEO) in Mumbai. Also, as CEO,
Kirkee Cantonment (which is in Pune but separate from Pune Cantt), he is
learned to have committed a number of irregularities. This move to bring in
a man of doubtful credentials came to light even as gory details of the
Adarsh scam were emerging. It highlights an unseemly interest in defence
land. The armed forces own prime real estate of over 7,000 sq km -- more
than five times the size of Delhi. Rachel Koshy was issued transfer orders
on October 5. She was forced to carry out the order in just three days and
hand over charge to Dhayalan, who was CEO in Lucknow. According to Lt Gen
Khanna's communication, the DGDE, who issued the order, was himself retiring
on October 31, and ensured that Koshy was out before the new DGDE took over.
In a letter written by Koshy to the president of the PCB in the second week
of October, she said that the cantonment president had asked her orally not
to hand over charge, and that this was conveyed to the DGDE. But the ``DGDE
categorically directed me to hand over charge of CEO, Pune, immediately to
Shri B A Dhayalan and accordingly the charge was handed over,'' she wrote.
This indicates an obvious interest on the DGDE's part to bring in Dhayalan.
The struggle to keep Pune's military land out of the clutches of the real
estate mafia is hardly a secret. At least three Indian Defence Estate
Service officials from Pune are currently under CBI investigation.http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/6855893.cms?prtpage=1
Bharat Dynamics to supply Milan 2T anti-tank guided missile to the Indian
Army
Our Bureau Mon, Nov 1, 2010 11:15 CET Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) signed
on Friday a contract worth Rs 300 crore for the supply of Milan 2T, a second
generation, anti-tank guided missile to the Army. The missile has a
range of about 2 km with a tandem warhead. The deal was signed by the
Hyderabad-based, Defence Public Sector Undertaking with the Union Government
in New Delhi, according to a company press release here on Saturday.
MILAN is a European anti-tank guided missile. Design of the MILAN started in
1962. It was ready for trials in 1971, and was accepted for service in 1972.
It is a wire guided SACLOS (Semi-Automatic Command to Line-Of-Sight)
missile, which means the sight of the launch unit has to be aimed at the
target to guide the missile. The MILAN can be equipped with a MIRA thermal
sight, to give it night-firing ability.http://www.defenseworld.net/go/defensenews.jsp?id=5183
<http://www.defenseworld.net/go/defensenews.jsp?id=5183&h=%20Bharat%20Dynami
cs%20to%20supply%20Milan%202T%20anti-tank%20guided%20missile%20to%20the%20In
dian%20Army>
&h=%20Bharat%20Dynamics%20to%20supply%20Milan%202T%20anti-tank%20guided%20mi
ssile%20to%20the%20Indian%20Army
DRDO Daksh Unmanned Ground Vehicles for Indian Army; Surveillance UAVs for
Counter Terror Operations by Year-end
DRDO Daksh Unmanned Ground Vehicles for Indian Army; Surveillance UAVs for
Counter Terror Operations by Year-end 2010-10-28 Newspaper reports indicate
that the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is preparing a
road map for induction of Unmanned Ground Vehicles in to the Indian Army.
The Hindu reports: Inaugurating the "Driving Innovation - DRDO Student
Robot Competition 2010" at the Combat Vehicles Research and Development
Establishment (CVRDE) at Avadi near here, Mr. Sundaresh said the Army had
agreed to induct 20 Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), developed by the
DRDO's R&D establishment in Pune. Daksh, the ROV, would locate, handle
and destroy hazardous objects safely. Designed to operate remotely from a
range of 500 metres, it was capable of handling improvised explosive
devices. Another version to monitor the contamination level in a
Nuclear Biological Chemical-affected environment through its Radiation
Measurement and Automatic Control Unit and Portable Gas Chromatograph was
ready and the Army had to come up with its requirement, he said. Few
weeks ago DRDO officials held meetings with the Army's Director-General
(Perspective Planning). It was concluded that the road map for induction of
unmanned ground vehicles would be ready in the next few months. Netra
demonstration Netra - the fully autonomous, video surveillance unmanned
aerial vehicle (UAV) has been demonstrated to the Indian Army. It can be
deployed from a distance of one and a half kilometers and can fly at a
height of up to 200 meters. Its primary function is to send live video feeds
to the base. Vertical take-off and landing of the portable Netra UAV have
been achieved with four high-speed propellers. It is ready for induction
into the Army by year-end.http://www.india-defence.com/reports-4685